Bhandarkar shares that since the film came out at a time when there was no social media or pap culture, many people were not sure what Page 3 even meant. “Many of them thought that this was a murder mystery,” he tells us, adding, “Someone even questioned if the film was based on a literal page numbered 3.”

Bhandarkar reveals that he was fascinated by Bollywood parties. “One day, I went to a party where I saw big politicians, Bollywood celebrities, and all of them were interacting with the journalists there,” the 56-year-old recalls, adding, “After the party, I dropped a few of them in my car to a taxi stand.” It was that encounter that prompted Bhandarkar to capture a journalist’s point of view in the film.

“I realized that these people (journalists) who have access to the biggest people in the world... their own life is very normal and middle-class,” he reflects.

Ask the director about the casting process, and he shares, “I did approach a couple of big actresses. They heard the idea. Some liked it. Some had date issues, and some had drive issues, as we didn’t have a budget. Some actresses didn’t even see any merit in the idea.”

Eventually, he decided to approach Sen Sharma, as he had seen her film Mr & Mrs Iyer (2002). “Nobody in Bollywood knew of Konkona Sen Sharma... I called her, and she had no idea what Page 3 culture was all about. We were 15-20 minutes into the narration, and she said bluntly that she wasn’t getting the film. But she had faith in my vision as a filmmaker, so she said yes even without hearing the full script,” Bhandarkar reveals.

Bhandarkar reveals that the iconic scene from Page 3 that saw actor Manoj Joshi’s character, a chauffeur, gossip about the industry was the last addition in the film. “The whole sequence was put at the end. I called up Manoj to play the driver, and that sequence was derived from real life, and he agreed. We shot it all in four hours, and it became a highlight of the film,” he tells us, divulging, “80% of Page 3 is derived from real-life incidents that I have witnessed. I went to a Bollywood celebrity’s funeral, and I saw people discussing the designer they were wearing, inviting people to trial screenings and all. So, I put that exactly that way in the film.”

At a time when singer Lata Mangeshkar had almost quit doing playback singing, Bhandarkar got her to record Kitne Ajeeb Rishte Hai Yahan for the film. “Page 3 is incomplete without Lata Mangeshkar,” Bhandarkar muses, revealing, “It was very difficult (to get her to sing for the film) as we didn’t have a budget. But she agreed to sing because she loved the song.” He shares, “She would stop after every word to check if I was getting what I wanted... Her dedication at that age [she was in her late 70s} was so inspiring. I got to work with both Mangeshkar sisters (also, singer Asha Bhosle) in that film, and I feel so lucky about that.”

Bhandarkar believes Page 3 started a whole new trend — films dwelling on the underbelly of the glamour industry. The trend that started with the Konkona-starrer continued with Fashion (2008) and Heroine (2012) “It was appreciated globally in film festivals and in India too... I continue on that path with my next film, Wives of Bollywood, which is like Page 3 on steroids,” he says.